Category Archives: Leadership

What You Must Know Before Leading a Design Thinking Workshop

What You Need to Know Before Leading a Design Thinking Workshop

GUEST POST from Douglas Ferguson

Leading a design thinking workshop can completely transform your company for the better. According to the 71% of brands that champion design thinking, making a shift to a design-centered mindset will dramatically improve productivity and work ethic amongst your staff.

Are you ready to take your team to the next level?

If you’re ready to take your team to the next level by leading a design thinking workshop, it’s essential to know the basics of design thinking first. Having a deeper understanding of this human-centered approach will make it easier to get your team on board with this process.

In this article we’ll cover the basics of design thinking and the best way to approach leading a workshop for your team with the following topics:

What is Design Thinking?
A History of Design Methodology
The Six Phases of Design Thinking
Leading a Design Thinking Workshop

Understanding Design Thinking

Design thinking is a creative problem-solving method that centers on the needs of the end-user, by considering them first when creating products or services. When you authentically understand the wants and needs of the consumer, you can develop successful products and services they value and use to improve their lives.

Ultimately, a design thinking approach helps you understand the experience of the end-user by adopting the end user’s mindset and creating your product or service from this perspective.

A History of Design Thinking

The human-centered design process is an extension of the design thinking methodology. Though scientists, creatives, scholars, analysts, and engineers have studied this methodology for the past several years, the idea to apply a design mindset to problem-solving as a business strategy didn’t exist until the cognitive scientist and Nobel Prize laureate Herbert A. Simon coined the term in 1969. Simon explained the modern idea of design as an applicable way of thinking about business in his book, The Sciences of the Artificial.

Whiteboarding

Since Simon began the conversation about the design thinking methodology, many academic elites and experts have adopted this concept and expanded upon it. Yet one thing remains the same: the user should be at the core of any design process. The human-centered process is an exploration of how to accurately and innovatively create a product or service that satisfies consumers’ wants and needs.

“We must design for the way people behave, not for how we would wish them to behave.” –Donald A. Norman, Living with Complexity

Women with Laptop Pexels

The Six Phases of Design Thinking

Let’s take a look at the six phases of the human-centered design process to learn how to create with purpose as you prepare for leading a design thinking workshop.

1. Observe & Understand Users’ Behavior

The first phase of the design thinking process is to observe and understand the end user’s behavior to learn as much as possible about their needs. This allows you to better understand the people you are designing for as you approach problem-solving from their perspective. Doing so will allow you to deeply empathize with them and identify opportunities to better cater to and address these issues.

By identifying the end user’s behavioral patterns you’ll have a clearer understanding of what your customers enjoy and what they are dissatisfied with. This phase allows for greater innovation as you build trust and connect to your consumers.

Women Collaboration Pexels

2. Ideation

The ideation phase focuses on brainstorming new solutions based on what you learned by observing the end-user. Remember to stay focused on a human-centered design process while generating ideas. The use of divergent thinking is critical in this stage to foster creativity and generate as many ideas as possible.

In the ideation phase, everything is fair game. For example, instead of worrying about the details of how your potential ideas will work, focus on “why not?”

There are no right or wrong answers, only potential creative solutions to the problems you’ve identified. When you prioritize the needs and desires of the people you are creating for, you’ll arrive at the most successful solutions that you’ll continue to refine through the rest of the design thinking process.

3. Prototype

Now that you have potential solutions, it’s time to bring your best ideas to life with rapid prototypes. In this phase, you’ll test your ideas in real-time with real people to get their feedback. Rapid prototypes are quick and easy versions of the ideas you want to create. Their role is to ensure that your vision is on target and it allows you space to make amendments based on feedback before you make the final product.

This experimental phase isn’t about perfection. The goal is to create a quick, tangible prototype so that you can test it.

Group of People Whiteboarding Pexels

4. Feedback

In the feedback phase of the design process, you’ll test your prototype. This is perhaps the most vital part of the human-centered design process as it will determine whether or not your idea works for the people you are designing for.

Get your prototype in the hands of your target consumer and ask them: how and why does this product/service achieve or fail to reach your needs and desires? During this stage, you’ll want to collect as many details as possible from testers as you’ll use this feedback to finalize your solution.

5. Integration

The integration phase of the design thinking process helps you to identify the usefulness of the proposed solution. Consider the feedback you receive and how you can implement it into your design to make it better. This is a fluid process: integrate, test, and repeat until you reach the best version of your idea. Once your solution is fully-fledged and replicable, it’s time to share it.

6. Application

It’s time to send your idea out into the world! During this last stage of the design thinking process, make the final prototype and share it. It’s important to keep an eye on changes in your target audience and their needs and desires as time progresses so that you can make adaptations to your design as necessary.

With each new update, return to phase one and repeat the process for best results. Remember that the user’s needs change over time, so it is important to anticipate future alterations to best serve consumers’ changing needs.

Leading a Design Thinking Workshop

When we approach innovation with a human-centered design process, we are able to empathize with and therefore better understand the end-user and what they truly desire. Everything we create is an extension from t

When we approach innovation with a human-centered design process, we can empathize with and therefore better understand the end-user and what they truly desire. By leading a design thinking workshop, you’ll encourage your team to innovate in this human-centered way. As you create everything from this level of self-awareness, you’ll ultimately develop better products and services as you improve your company and team as well.

Once you have a clear understanding of the design thinking process, you’ll be able to lead your design thinking workshop with your team. Whether your design sprint is a few days or a few hours, a well-executed design thinking workshop will help you keep your customers’ needs top of mind.

Hiring a professional facilitator is one of the best ways to lead a design thinking workshop at your company. At Voltage Control, our team of facilitators is happy to assist you in your design thinking needs. With a clear understanding of this methodology and an effort to lead your team with the same mentality, you’re sure to see the benefits of adopting a design thinking approach.

This article originally appeared on VoltageControl.com, you can find it HERE.

Do you want to learn more about human-centered design?

Voltage Control facilitates design thinking workshops, innovation sessions, and Design Sprints. Please reach out at hello@voltagecontrol.com for a consultation.

Image credits: Pexels, Unsplash

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Partnership Experience Audit 101

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Partnership Experience Audit 101

GUEST POST from Chateau G Pato

In the rapidly evolving marketplace of today, the ability to effectively manage and nurture partnerships is a competitive advantage that no company can afford to overlook. Conducting a Partnership Experience Audit every year is a crucial activity that ensures your collaboration dynamics align with your strategic business objectives. This audit not only strengthens existing relationships but also ensures your company is poised for success in attracting new partners.

Why is a Partner Experience Audit Important?

Think of a Partner Experience Audit as a diagnostic tool for your partnership strategies. It allows you to uncover relationship bottlenecks, enhance communication processes, and align mutual objectives. Conducting this audit annually guarantees that your engagements are not just surviving but thriving. Being proactive in understanding the needs and expectations of your partners empowers your growth strategy by cementing a resilient partnership ecosystem.

Key Activities in a Partner Experience Audit

Stakeholder Interviews: Conduct in-depth interviews with key stakeholders to gather insights on the strengths and weaknesses of the partnership.
Performance Analysis: Evaluate the past year’s performance metrics to assess alignment and execution against objectives.
Feedback Loops: Implement systematic feedback processes to continuously capture partner sentiment and address areas of concern.
Communication Review: Analyze communication channels and frequency to ensure transparency and efficiency.
Alignment Sessions: Facilitate strategic alignment sessions to ensure shared vision and goal synchronization.

Benefits of Conducting a Partner Experience Audit

Undertaking a Partner Experience Audit enhances collaboration, fosters innovation, and strengthens partnership value. These evaluations allow businesses to identify areas for improvement, offering insights into more effective decision-making and resource allocation. Moreover, they contribute to a culture of continuous improvement, crucial for long-term success.

How Companies Use Partner Experience Audits as a Competitive Advantage

Innovative companies like Apple and Microsoft have leveraged Partner Experience Audits to create seamless, beneficial infrastructures for their partners. For instance, Apple thoroughly assesses partner experiences to refine their supplier protocols and innovate collaboratively, maintaining high product standards and market leadership.

Microsoft, on the other hand, uses these audits to enhance partner ecosystems, supporting their mission to empower every organization. By ensuring frictionless interactions through their audits, Microsoft builds trust and reinforces its strategic partnerships, contributing to its reputation as a collaborative powerhouse.

Beyond these giants, consider any organization that wishes to harness the energy similar to that detailed in Change Management Strategy, where aligning change initiatives with partnership audits can further drive synergy and success.

Conclusion

Executing a thorough Partner Experience Audit yearly isn’t just an operational exercise; it’s a strategic necessity. As your company navigates the complexities of the modern business landscape, these audits will serve as the cornerstone for building robust, adaptive, and successful partnerships. Embrace this opportunity to fine-tune your partner relationships and set the stage for sustainable growth.

Bottom line: Futurology is not fortune telling. Futurists use a scientific approach to create their deliverables, but a methodology and tools like those in FutureHacking™ can empower anyone to engage in futurology themselves.

Image credit: Pexels

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The Future of Agile

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Trends and Innovations

GUEST POST from Art Inteligencia

The Future of Agile

Introduction to the Evolving Landscape of Agile

As thought leaders in human-centered change and innovation, we must continuously adapt and evolve. Agile methodologies have transformed how organizations operate, focusing on flexibility, collaboration, and customer-centric solutions. As we look to the future, several trends and innovations are expected to reshape the Agile landscape.

Emerging Trends in Agile

The Agile landscape is ever-evolving, responding to technological advancements and shifts in organizational culture. Here are the trends that are gaining momentum:

Agile Beyond Software Development: Agile principles are now being applied across various sectors, from marketing to finance, embracing a more holistic approach to organizational agility.
Remote and Distributed Teams: With the rise of remote work, Agile practices are evolving to support distributed teams, emphasizing virtual collaboration and digital tools.
AI and Machine Learning Integration: Agile processes are increasingly integrating AI and machine learning, optimizing workflows, and enhancing decision-making.

Case Studies: Leading the Agile Revolution

Case Study 1: Spotify’s Squad Model

Spotify has become synonymous with Agile innovation through its unique approach known as the ‘Squad Model.’ This framework promotes team autonomy and accountability, empowering ‘squads’ to operate as self-contained units focusing on specific objectives. Each squad is cross-functional, enhancing collaboration and efficiency.

The success of Spotify’s model highlights the importance of customizing Agile practices to fit organizational needs and culture, fostering an environment conducive to rapid innovation and experimentation.

Case Study 2: ING’s Agile Transformation

In the financial services sector, ING has demonstrated the power of Agile transformation. Through the adoption of Agile principles, ING restructured its operations, breaking down silos and fostering a collaborative, customer-focused culture.

This transformation involved training over 3,500 employees in Agile methodologies, integrating Agile teams across multiple departments to enhance efficiency and speed to market. ING’s journey underscores the potential for Agile practices to drive significant organizational change, even within highly regulated industries.

Innovations Driving the Future of Agile

As Agile continues to evolve, several innovations are expected to shape its future:

Agile at Scale: Large organizations are increasingly seeking ways to implement Agile at the enterprise level, integrating Agile methodologies across all facets of their operations.
Agility in Strategic Leadership: Leadership teams are adopting Agile practices to enhance strategic decision-making and responsiveness to market dynamics.
Hybrid Models: Many companies are blending Agile with traditional project management methodologies to create hybrid models that leverage the strengths of both approaches.

Conclusion

The future of Agile is bright, driven by the need for organizations to remain competitive in an ever-changing environment. By embracing these trends and innovations, companies can not only survive but thrive in a landscape marked by constant change.

For more insights into organizational change, explore our article on Agile Leadership and discover strategies for effective Digital Transformation.

Image credit: Pixabay

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Disrupt Yourself, Your Team and Your Organization

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Disrupt Yourself, Your Team and Your Organization

GUEST POST from Janet Sernack

Moving into a new year is always a time for retreating and reflecting to accelerate growth and harvest new ideas from our feelings, thoughts, and learnings gleaned from the last two years of disruption, extreme uncertainty, and instability. Whether you are actively seeking to disrupt yourself, your team, and your organization to effect sustainable success this year, or not, we all have the opportunity to adapt, innovate and grow from the range of challenging events that impacted us in the past 24 months. This is why it might be useful to see these disruptive events as positive, powerful, and impactful forces for creating new cracks in your own, or your team or organizational soil – to sow some imaginative, creative, and inventive seeds for effecting positive change in an unstable world.

To see them germinate the desired changes you want for yourself, your team, and organization and deliver them, to survive and thrive in 2022.

We are all being challenged by disruption

Our status quo and concepts of business-as-usual have all been significantly disrupted, resulting in a range and series of deep neurological shocks, that have shaken many of us, our teams, and our organizations, to our very cores. Some of us adapted to a sense of urgency and exploited the opportunity to reinvent, iterate, or pivot our teams and organizations, towards co-creating individual and intentional “new normals” and just “got on” with it. Some of us have continually denied, defended, and avoided making changes, where many of us have sunk deeply into our fears and anxieties, falsely believing that our lives, and our work, would eventually go back to “normal”.

This is because a significant number of our habitual, largely unconscious mental models and emotional states, were disrupted, largely by events beyond our individual and collective control. Causing many of us to experience “cognitive dissonance” (a situation involving conflicting attitudes, beliefs, or behaviors that produce feelings of mental discomfort leading to an alteration in one of the attitudes, beliefs, or behaviors to reduce the discomfort and restore balance) from the chaos, discomfort, confusion, and conflict.

Which saw many of us, disconnect cognitively and emotionally, from the current disruptive reality, where some of us secretly hoped that “it will all go away” manifesting and festering fundamentally and unconsciously, as inherent neurological immobility, (freeze, fight, flight) resulting in many areas as resistance to change.

Why disrupt yourself, your team, and organization?

Yet disruptive change is inevitable, the speed and pace of exponential change cannot be stopped, the range of complex and wicked global and local problems that need to be solved collectively, aren’t going away.

Job security and full-time employment, as hybrid and virtual work, and technology accelerate, are becoming “things of the past” as the workplace continues to destabilize through digitization, AI, and automation.

Whilst the war for talent also accelerates as the great resignation sets in and people make powerful, empowered life balance decisions and are on the move globally.

Taking the first steps to disrupt yourself, your team, and organization

In this time of extreme uncertainty, we have a unique moment in time, to disrupt ourselves, teams, and organizations by:

Hitting our individual, collective mental, and emotional pause buttons, to retreat from our business-as-usual activities, and take time out to reflect upon paying attention and qualifying:

How specifically have I/we been disrupted?
How have our people, teams, and customers been disrupted?
What are some of the major collective impacts on our organization’s current status and how might these impact our future growth potential and overall sustainability?
How connected are we to an exponential world, how can we ensure that our feelings, thoughts, and actions, connect with what is really happening to us, our teams, and our customers?
What causes disconnection and how might we manage it to be more mentally tough and emotionally agile in an extremely uncertain future?
What really matters to us, our teams, organizations, and customers – what do our people, teams, and customers really want from us?
What are some of the key elements of our organizational strategy to enact our purpose and deliver our mission?

Generating safe, evocative, provocative, and creative conversations, that evoke deep listening and deep questioning, about how to individually and collectively reconnect, revitalize, rejuvenate and reenergize people, teams and organizations to survive and thrive through asking:

How can we engage and harness our people and teams’ energies in ways that mobilize their collective intelligence to evoke new mindset shifts and new ways of thinking and acting?
What are some of the key mindsets and traits we need to disrupt, shift, and cultivate to be successful to adapt and grow through disruption?
What skills do our leaders and teams need to learn to think and act differently to shift the organizations culture to deliver our strategy?
How might we shift our teams and organizations to be agile, and redesign our organizations for both stability and speed?
What does it mean to us, our teams, and organizations to be creative, inventive, and innovative – How might we shift our teams and organizations to be more creative, inventive, and innovative?
What are the new behavioral norms that will support and enable us to execute agile and innovative changes?
How might becoming agile and innovative help our people, teams co-create a healthy, high-performing, and sustainable organizational culture?
How might becoming agile and innovative add value to the quality of people’s lives and help our customers flourish?

Becoming comfortable with being uncomfortable by developing our peoples, teams, and our organizational “discomfort resilience” and dance of the edge of your comfort zones through:

Creating safe environments where people and teams are allowed to experiment, have permission, and are trusted to practice, make mistakes as they move through difficult emotions, and take little bets in low stake situations.
Intentionally breaking organizational routines and habits, to create space in people’s brains for new neural pathways to be developed.
Enabling people and teams to become mindful of their triggers, to interrupt their automatic reactions.
Equipping people and teams to thoughtfully and intentionally respond to situations, that make them uncomfortable and risk-averse, by knowing how to think differently.
Bringing more play into the way people work, encourages people to be imaginative, inquisitive, curious, and improvisational, to seek different ways of thinking and acting, that really make a difference in how work gets done.
Support people and teams to learn by doing, and failing fast, without the fear of blame, shame, and retribution, despite it being risky to do that.

Why not disrupt yourself, your team, and organization?

The future is going to be full of disruptive events and circumstances that will impact is our families, communities, team, and organizations, and the conditions of extreme uncertainty and disruption are not going to go away. In fact, they are fundamental to what might be described as our collective “new normal” and it’s up to you to disrupt yourself, your team, and organization, to lead, adapt and grow, to survive and thrive through it.

Find out about The Coach for Innovators Certified Program, a collaborative, intimate, and deep personalized innovation coaching and learning program, supported by a global group of peers over 8-weeks, starting May 2022. It is a blended learning program that will give you a deep understanding of the language, principles, and applications of a human-centered approach to innovation, within your unique context. Find out more.

Contact us now at mailto:janet@imaginenation.com.au to find out how we can partner with you to learn, adapt, and grow your business, team and organization through disruption.

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The Role of Mentorship in Leadership Development

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The Role of Mentorship in Leadership Development

GUEST POST from Art Inteligencia

In today’s rapidly changing business landscape, mentorship plays a crucial role in leadership development. As thought leaders in the domain of human-centered change and innovation, we recognize that mentorship not only accelerates the growth of future leaders but also fosters a culture of continuous learning and improvement within organizations. Through mentorship, experienced leaders impart valuable insights, crucial skills, and critical thinking capabilities to their mentees, nurturing the next generation of visionary leaders. In this article, we will explore the role of mentorship in leadership development through three insightful case studies.

Case Study 1: The Rise of a Tech Innovator

Background

Sarah was a talented software engineer at a leading tech firm. Despite her technical prowess, she struggled with soft skills and strategic thinking required for leadership roles. Her company initiated a mentorship program to help high-potential employees like Sarah develop essential leadership skills.

Mentoring Journey

Paired with a seasoned leader, Sarah embarked on a six-month mentorship program. Her mentor, a tech industry veteran, provided guidance on navigating complex team dynamics, communicating effectively, and understanding the broader business strategy.

Outcomes

By the end of the program, Sarah successfully transitioned into a project manager role, leading a cross-functional team. Her mentor’s insights enabled her to approach challenges with a strategic mindset, ultimately driving significant innovations within her team. Her journey exemplifies how mentorship can transform technical experts into dynamic leaders.

Case Study 2: Cultivating Leadership in Healthcare

Background

Dr. Mark, a gifted physician, aspired to lead a department at a prestigious hospital. Although he excelled in patient care, he needed to enhance his leadership and organizational skills to effectively manage a medical team.

Mentoring Journey

The hospital’s mentorship program connected Dr. Mark with a senior healthcare administrator. Through bi-weekly meetings, his mentor taught him how to implement operational improvements, engage with medical staff, and make data-driven decisions.

Outcomes

With his mentor’s guidance, Dr. Mark spearheaded several departmental initiatives that increased efficiency and improved patient outcomes. His leadership was instrumental in the hospital being recognized as a center of excellence. Dr. Mark’s story highlights the importance of mentorship in developing leaders in professions where technical expertise often needs to be balanced with leadership skills.

Case Study 3: Empowering Entrepreneurs

Background

Lisa, a budding entrepreneur, launched her own startup focused on sustainable fashion. She was passionate about her business but struggled with scaling operations and securing investment.

Mentoring Journey

Lisa joined a mentorship program for entrepreneurs, where she was matched with a successful business owner. Her mentor provided insights on strategic planning, networking, and pitching to investors. Over monthly mentorship sessions, Lisa learned how to refine her business model and improve her leadership capabilities.

Outcomes

With her mentor’s support, Lisa successfully raised capital and expanded her team. Her brand gained recognition in the industry for both quality and ethical practices. Lisa attributes her accelerated growth and confidence as a leader to the invaluable guidance of her mentor, demonstrating the transformative impact of mentorship on entrepreneurship.

Conclusion

Throughout these case studies, the common thread is the transformative power of mentorship in leadership development. Whether in technology, healthcare, or entrepreneurship, mentorship equips aspiring leaders with the necessary skills and knowledge to excel in their roles. By fostering a culture of learning and support, organizations can leverage mentorship not only to develop future leaders but also to drive innovation and success. Let us continue to embrace mentorship as a strategic tool for shaping the leaders of tomorrow.

Image credit: Pexels

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Integrating Agile Practices into Non-Software Projects

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Integrating Agile Practices into Non-Software Projects

GUEST POST from Art Inteligencia

Agile practices are often celebrated in the software development realm, promising flexibility, responsiveness, and enhanced collaboration. But, the principles of Agile can be extended beyond software. At its core, Agile strives to deliver value and facilitate continuous improvement, making it a valuable methodology for a variety of disciplines. In this article, we will explore how Agile practices can be integrated into non-software projects, supported by two compelling case studies.

Case Study 1: Agile in Marketing Campaign Management

Background: A global retail company, RetailCorp, faced challenges with their traditional marketing campaign management process, which was rigid, slow to adapt to market trends, and resulted in delayed campaign launches.

Agile Implementation: RetailCorp adopted Scrum, one of the most popular Agile frameworks, for their marketing team. They formed a cross-functional team including designers, content creators, data analysts, and campaign managers to collaborate and focus on delivering incremental value. Daily stand-ups, sprint planning, and retrospectives were introduced to the non-software team.

Outcomes:

Increased Flexibility: The marketing team could swiftly pivot strategies in response to competitors’ actions or new market data.
Enhanced Collaboration: The cross-functional team dynamic fostered innovation and creative problem-solving.
Reduced Time to Market: Campaigns were launched 30% faster compared to the previous process.

Case Study 2: Agile in Product Design and Development

Background: DesignStudio, a company specializing in developing consumer electronics, sought a way to accelerate their product design and development timeline without compromising quality.

Agile Implementation: DesignStudio embraced Kanban, aiming for a leaner workflow. They visualized the design and development process using Kanban boards, which provided transparency and facilitated the spotting and resolution of bottlenecks.

Outcomes:

Improved Workflow Efficiency: By limiting work in progress, DesignStudio minimized context-switching and improved focus.
Enhanced Quality: Continuous feedback loops ensured that design flaws were identified and corrected earlier in the process.
Faster Development Lifecycle: Products were designed and ready for market 25% quicker.

Keys to Successful Agile Integration in Non-Software Projects

Here are several strategies for successfully integrating Agile practices into non-software projects:

Adapt and Tailor: Customize Agile practices to fit the unique requirements and constraints of your non-software projects.
Focus on Training: Provide comprehensive Agile training to ensure teams understand the principles and can swiftly adapt.
Emphasize Collaborative Culture: Foster an environment where open communication and collaboration are prioritized, breaking down traditional silos.
Measure and Iterate: Regularly assess the effectiveness of Agile practices in achieving project goals and iterate for continuous improvement.

By harnessing Agile practices, non-software projects can achieve higher levels of efficiency, flexibility, and quality. The principles underpinning Agile aren’t limited to software; they are about fostering a culture of adaptability, continuous learning, and value-driven outcomes. As organizations continue to evolve in competitive landscapes, Agile methodologies offer a powerful tool for achieving sustainable success.

This article provides an insightful exploration of integrating Agile practices into non-software projects, featuring two illustrative case studies. It demonstrates practical examples and key strategies for successful Agile adoption beyond the realm of software development.

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Embracing Failure – Lessons Learned from Setbacks

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Embracing Failure - Lessons Learned from Setbacks

GUEST POST from Art Inteligencia

In the world of innovation, failure is not just inevitable, it’s essential. Embracing failure can lead to groundbreaking discoveries, foster resilience, and cultivate a culture that thrives on learning. While the stigma of failure persists, forward-thinking organizations understand that embracing setbacks is a cornerstone of progress. Here, we explore two compelling case studies that illustrate how failure can be transformed into a stepping stone for future success.

Case Study 1: The Rise of Airbnb

When Brian Chesky and Joe Gebbia first conceived the idea of renting out air mattresses on their apartment floor, their concept wasn’t an overnight sensation. The fledgling platform struggled, with its initial website launch garnering disappointing engagement. The duo faced numerous rejections from investors, many of whom doubted the viability of the idea. However, rather than viewing these setbacks as failures, the team saw them as opportunities to refine their model and focus on user experience.

Lessons Learned:

Pivoting is powerful: Chesky and Gebbia used feedback from failures to adapt their business model, eventually redefining the travel and lodging industry.
Persistence is key: Despite numerous rejections, they persisted, displaying resilience that would eventually lead to Airbnb’s global success.

Case Study 2: The WD-40 Story

WD-40, now a staple in households worldwide, originated from a series of failures. The product’s creation was the result of 39 unsuccessful attempts to develop a formula to prevent corrosion. Instead of seeing these failed attempts as a loss, the creators viewed each one as a learning opportunity. The breakthrough came with the 40th formula, hence the name “WD-40” which stands for “Water Displacement, 40th formula”.

Lessons Learned:

Learning from repetition: Every failed attempt provided valuable data, ultimately leading to a successful product.
Failure can fortify determination: The triple-digit number of attempts underscores how determination can lead to ultimate success.

Conclusion

Both of these stories demonstrate that failure is not the opposite of success; it is part of its journey. Organizations willing to embrace failure cultivate a learning culture, fostering innovation and improvement. Embracing failure also sets the stage for transformational change as each setback provides the chance to learn, innovate, and ultimately succeed.

Image credit: Unsplash

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Driving Innovation Through Empathy, Leadership and Understanding

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Driving Innovation Through Empathy, Leadership and Understanding

GUEST POST from Art Inteligencia

In the rapidly evolving world of business, innovation stands as a critical driver for success. While processes, structures, and technologies play substantial roles, the human element—particularly empathy—holds profound potential. Empathy allows leaders to deeply understand and genuinely connect with their teams and customers, fostering an environment where innovation thrives. This article explores the intricate relationship between empathy and leadership, anchored by compelling case studies that illustrate transformative outcomes when empathy is prioritized.

Case Study 1: The LEGO Group

LEGO, the beloved toy company, experienced significant challenges in the early 2000s. The company was nearing bankruptcy due to a failure to adapt to the changing interests of its core audience—children. The leadership team at LEGO realized a need to step back and adopt a fresh perspective grounded in empathy.

The turnaround strategy, famously termed “LEGO’s Business Transformation,” required the leadership to immerse themselves in the world of their customers—children. By spending time observing and interacting with children during play sessions, LEGO’s leaders understood the emotional and creative needs of their audience. This led to innovations like the immensely popular LEGO Friends series, which was designed based on detailed feedback from young girls who were previously underserved by traditionally boy-oriented LEGO products.

The result was not only an incredible resurgence in profitability but also an innovation culture that prioritizes deep customer connection and iterative feedback—a testament to the power of empathy-driven leadership.

Case Study 2: Microsoft’s Cultural Transformation

When Satya Nadella became the CEO of Microsoft in 2014, the company was seen as a bureaucratic giant struggling to compete with more nimble tech innovators. Nadella’s leadership focused heavily on empathy, both internally across Microsoft’s vast workforce and externally toward customers.

Internally, Nadella encouraged a cultural shift from a “know-it-all” to a “learn-it-all” philosophy. He challenged teams to use empathy to transform customer engagement strategies and product development processes. A concrete example is the development of features for people with disabilities, inspired by Nadella’s personal experiences as a father of a child with special needs.

This empathy-first approach led to breakthrough innovations such as Seeing AI, an app that narrates the world for the visually impaired, exemplifying how deep understanding and leadership empathy could drive product innovation while simultaneously enhancing Microsoft’s brand value and market relevance.

Conclusion

Empathy enables leaders to connect deeply with their teams and customers, providing a compass that guides innovative practices. The stories of LEGO and Microsoft underscore the profound impact that empathy can have when it shapes leadership strategies. As businesses grapple with complex challenges, those that integrate empathy into the very fabric of their leadership are not only poised to innovate but to do so in a manner that genuinely resonates with human needs.

In embracing empathy, leaders unlock the key to sustainable innovation, transforming their organizations into environments where understanding, creativity, and impact coexist harmoniously.

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What Innovators Can Learn From the Spectacular Rise and Crash of Theranos

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Including its CEO Elizabeth Holmes

What Innovators Can Learn From the Spectacular Rise and Crash of Theranos

Last week in a Silicon Valley courtroom, Theranos founder and CEO Elizabeth Holmes was convicted on four counts of fraud in connection with the failed blood-testing company she founded in 2003. The Stanford dropout will soon be sentenced to up to 20 years in prison. She joins a long list of convicted fakers that includes Bernie Madoff, Jeff Skilling, John DeLorean, and many others.

For most observers, the question now is how Holmes got so far, so fast. But for innovators everywhere, I want to focus on a different question: what can we learn from this case study of innovation gone bad?

As an innovation author and trainer to corporate America, I see this as a tragedy for future startups, and the field of innovation.

From the beginning, I followed the amazing rise and spectacular fall of Theranos. At its zenith, the firm soared to a $9 billion valuation. When articles appeared on Elizabeth’s achievements, I was dazzled. Here was a young woman who’d had the gall to drop out of college and start a company that promised to change the game in healthcare.

Theranos invented the nanotainer, which collected blood through a simple, painless finger prick. Several drops of blood could then be tested by another Theranos invention, the Edison. Capable, according to company literature, of performing “hundreds” of separate tests, from standard cholesterol checks to AIDs and leukemia. “The results are faster, more accurate, and far cheaper than conventional methods,” crowed Wired Magazine in a 2014 cover story.

If only it were so. As the 18-week trial revealed, it was all smoke and mirrors.

The Edison was never able to perform any blood tests reliably. But instead of coming clean, Holmes chose to double down and lawyer up. In the book Bad Blood, Wall Street Journal reporter John Carreyrou detailed how Holmes went extreme. She harassed, threatened, and tried to silence internal whistleblowers. Carreyrou was pilloried before the Theranos staff and threatened by Holmes’ attorney and company stakeholder David Boies. Yet his damaging reporting led to Theranos’ unraveling. He carefully documented how Holmes and COO Ramesh “Sunny” Balwani resorted to using conventional test equipment behind the scenes, while pretending to patients and investors that Edison had performed the work.

As the story of Theranos now fades into history, what can be learned from this rare, behind-the-scenes insight into the amazing rise and fall of a startup that might guide the innovation efforts of others? What did Holmes get right, and where did she go wrong?

Innovators need to believe in themselves and think big, and they need self-discipline. Holmes had these attributes in spades. As a journal she kept revealed during the trial, Holmes kept up a grueling personal development regimen: “4 a.m. rise. Thank God, exercise, meditation, prayer. Eat breakfast Eat breakfast of whey and banana. Get to office by 6:45.”

Young and inexperienced in business, she apparently disciplined herself to speak in a deep and unemotional voice to make her seem older and more credible. She wore turtleneck sweaters to subliminally get people to think she might just be the second coming of Steve Jobs, her hero.

She made mentors of people like Larry Ellison and big-name investors like Tim Draper, who in turn helped convince big-name investors like the DeVoss family, the Cox family of Atlanta, and Rupert Murdock, who lost $125 million in the collapse.

Holmes’ was ultra-tough on herself to keep upping her game: “I am never a minute late,” she wrote in one entry. “I show no excitement. [I am] ALL ABOUT BUSINESS. I am not impulsive. I know the outcome of every encounter. I do not hesitate. I constantly make decisions and change them as needed. I speak rarely. I call bullshit immediately.”

Yet the one person she failed to call it on was herself.

And once she edged down that path with little lies, little deceptions, she got trapped into telling bigger and bigger lies. “Our equipment is already in use by the U.S. military on battlefields,” she promised would-be investors. It wasn’t. She was particularly good at establishing credibility, and somehow managed to charm such luminaries as Henry Kissinger, George Shultz, and James Mattis to serve on her board of directors, along with not a single scientist nor medical doctor who might have red-flagged problems with the Edison. (It is amazing that General Mattis apparently didn’t bother to check out the false claim that the military was already piloting the product on battlefields).

Holmes knew how to deflect when her offering proved vulnerable. Every good sales professional knows to “overcome objections.” But whenever visitors started asking her questions that were too close to the Big Lie (the product had major flaws), she aggressively pushed back with, “don’t ask us to reveal trade secrets.” While this shut them up, it did not solve her problem.

Another tool of innovators trying to build the buy-in for their ideas is to use the “fear of losing out” technique. There’s nothing unethical about it, unless you misrepresent facts. This strategy worked well for Holmes – at least for awhile. She used it successfully to secure big contracts, and big investments.

But the lie that did her in was a false attempt to demonstrate credibility. Before the jury, she admitted adding the logos of drug companies Pfizer and Schering-Plough to a marketing pitch to Walgreen Drugstores, at the time considering partnering with Theranos to install instant blood-testing centers in its 9,000 retail locations.

Final lesson to innovators: use creativity to make your case, but don’t fudge even on the smallest details. What Elizabeth did with the logos became a charge of wire fraud and was said to be the smoking gun that all jurors agreed on should send her to prison.

This article originally appeared in Forbes
Image credit: Wikimedia Commons

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The Leader’s Role in Innovation

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From Vision to Execution

The Leader's Role in Innovation

GUEST POST from Chateau G Pato

In the rapidly evolving business landscape, innovation is the bridge that connects customer needs with future-ready solutions. Yet, moving from vision to execution is often fraught with challenges. As a human-centered change and innovation thought leader, I believe that the success of this transformation hinges on effective leadership. Leaders play a pivotal role in navigating the complexities of innovation, driving the alignment of their teams, and ensuring the diligent execution of ideas. In this article, we will delve into the responsibilities of leaders during the innovation journey and illustrate these points with two insightful case studies.

The Leader’s Role in Innovation

Leading innovation isn’t just about having a great idea or setting ambitious goals. It requires a strategic approach and a deep commitment to fostering a culture of innovation. Leaders must be visionaries and executors, guiding their teams through the sometimes uncertain terrain of taking an idea to market. This involves:

Creating a Shared Vision: Leaders must articulate a clear and compelling vision that inspires and aligns the team towards a common purpose.
Fostering a Culture of Creativity: Encouraging experimentation, accepting failures as learning opportunities, and creating an enabling environment where creativity can thrive.
Empowering Teams: Empowering team members with the autonomy and resources needed to innovate effectively.
Ensuring Strategic Alignment: Ensuring that innovation efforts align with overall business strategies and customer needs.
Facilitating Cross-functional Collaboration: Breaking down silos to enable diverse teams to collaborate and co-create effectively.
Measuring and Iterating: Establishing metrics for success and being agile in iterating solutions based on feedback and results.

Case Study 1: Procter & Gamble’s Innovation Factory

Procter & Gamble (P&G) is renowned for its methodical approach to innovation. Guided by leaders who understand the value of systematic innovation, P&G built an ‘Innovation Factory’—a scalable platform that connects internal and external innovators to collaboratively solve problems. Leaders at P&G shifted their role from decision-makers to facilitators who guide and support these collaborations.

Key Takeaways:

P&G’s leadership encouraged open innovation by breaking down the traditional boundaries of R&D, allowing new ideas to flow in from different industries and cultures.
Their leaders empowered employees with the tools and resources necessary to explore innovative projects, carefully balancing guidance with creative freedom.
Through constant iteration and a focus on unmet consumer needs, P&G’s leadership ensures that innovation is strategically aligned with its business goals.

Case Study 2: Tesla’s Visionary Leadership

Tesla, under the leadership of Elon Musk, has distinguished itself as a leading innovator in the automotive industry. Musk’s leadership style demonstrates a clear vision combined with calculated risk-taking, propelling Tesla from an ambitious startup into a market leader.

Key Takeaways:

Elon Musk’s vision for sustainable energy and transport is deeply embedded in Tesla’s mission, energizing employees and stakeholders alike.
Tesla’s leadership embraces an iterative development process, dubbed ‘rapid iteration,’ that challenges traditional automotive development cycles.
Musk empowers his teams through high expectations and innovative work environments, ensuring that they are aligned with Tesla’s vision even when facing substantial challenges.

Conclusion

As seen in the cases of Procter & Gamble and Tesla, effective leadership is critical in the journey of innovation from vision to execution. By creating a shared vision, fostering a culture of creativity, and empowering their teams, leaders can overcome the obstacles inherent in the innovation process. As organizations navigate the complexities of the modern world, those with leaders who inspire, guide, and execute on innovative visions will be the ones to thrive.

Image credit: Pixabay

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